Corporates help rebuild flood-ravaged Chennai

"I have been inspired by the many acts of heroism and selflessness of those rendering assistance to the affected, including spontaneous action from within communities. We hope our modest contribution can give comfort to some of those who have had their lives turned upside down by this catastrophic flooding," says Sean Kelly, Australian Consul-General to South India. He was speaking after the Australian Consulate provided funding to supply emergency relief kits to over 200 families affected by the recent floods in Chennai, in collaboration with World Vision India.

Kelly's words reflect the sentiment of numerous corporates, private organisations and members of the civil society who pitched in through various contributions and initiatives, in a bid to help those who were affected by the floods in December last year. The interventions were widely recognised and appreciated by the government, NGOs and the affected populations alike. From IDFC which donated 50 lakhs to Fujitsu, the contributions to rebuild Chennai have been flowing thick and fast through the last couple of months.

"Our focus in IDFC was on driving speed and scale - reaching out to as many affected families as possible in a timely manner. While IDFC was directly engaged in putting together and distributing Revival Kits through our employee volunteering efforts, working with experienced and reputed NGOs who have an established track record of relief efforts and community outreach like World Vision helped us multiply our efforts and achieve our goal," says Animesh Kumar, CEO, IDFC Foundation.

The timely contributions from corporates and other partners have indeed brought cheer among relief organisations. "It was heart-warming to see corporates pitching in promptly as Chennai faced its worst floods in over a hundred years. Companies like Renault Nissan and Mahindra World City contributed extensively in providing relief to the areas around their offices," says Vijayakumar D from World Vision India, one of the NGOs actively involved in immediate relief.

One of the most effective ways of contribution was 'gifts in kind'. Companies offered essential goods ranging from water bottles (Coca Cola) to food packets (FICCI and Akshaya Patra) and BPL (solar lamps) to ICICI (bleaching powder). Ankidyne provided floor mats, while HCL offered to distribute relief packets. Gati had offered free logistics services for transportation of relief items to distribution locations, while Snapdeal, ITC Limited and Amazon also pitched in with their own interventions, according to World Vision India. Apart from private companies, the Australian Consulate also gave significant contributions to the humanitarian efforts following the floods.

"The response from our corporate partners has been fantastic, which directly helped over 20,000 families in North Chennai, Saidapet and Chintadripet - areas we work in. Now the rehabilitation phase has kicked in, which requires bigger and more strategic interventions. We are hopeful that corporate entities will continue the good work, to ensure that the families and children who suffered the most bounce back better," concludes Vijayakumar. Since November, the NGO has distributed over 1,00,000 water bottles, 21,000 food packets, 12,000 emergency relief kits, 30,00,000 water purification tablets, installed 10 bio toilets and facilitated 3 child-friendly spaces and 2 medical camps in different locations in the city.